I have renewed my love of marshmallows. Not from a stuff in the mouth or toast over a smoking fire perspective but as a cooking ingredient.
Marshmallows have an esteemed history dating back to approximately 2000 B.C when the Egyptians used the root of the mallow plant to make candied delicacies for their gods, nobility and pharaohs.
Found mostly in Europe and western Asia, Althaea officinalis grows as high as 180cm (6 feet) tall and sprouts light pink flowers. A member of the mallow family, it grows mainly in wet or marshy areas—and thus, "marsh" meets "mallow."
This recipe is super fast and foolproof. Great over fruit, ice cream or both, it can be made ahead, stored in the refrigerator and gently reheated in the microwave whenever the craving takes you.
Despite the ingredients, it is not sickly sweet like some caramel sauces and bears a striking resemblance to MacDonald's caramel fudge topping. Yummo!
Ingredients
125g butter
3/4 cup brown sugar, firmly packed
100g white marshmallows (Add a few pink if short on white ones. You will never know the difference.)
2 tablespoons milk.
Method
1. Combine all ingredients in a large, microwave safe jug.
2. Cook on HIGH for 30 second bursts stirring in between until the marshmallows are melted.
3. Stir or whisk well to mix.
4. Store in airtight container in the refrigerator if not eating straight away.
I have been trawling through old recipe books lately. It is a fascinating pastime that usually results in the conclusion that recipe books are no longer necessary. Every recipe, cooking idea, weights and measures information is available on the internet. Cookbooks clutter up the bookshelves and get dusty.
Last week I was reading a book named, "Cooking with Fruits." Oh, this will be interesting I thought, and sure enough it had weird recipes in it like Fruit Dip for Crudites, Honeydew Melon with Crab, and Veal with Pomegranates. No, none of these were for me.
So I quickly flicked to the sweet end of the book looking for a delicious creamy dessert or fancy cake recipe. Disappointment slowly mounted until I found this clever little recipe. Well, it is more an idea that can be adapted than a recipe.
To state the obvious, frozen desserts are brilliant. They can be made in advance then eaten in small or large quantities, by one, a few or many.
Raspberries- Fresh or frozen are suitable. I use frozen simply because they are cheaper.
Marshmallows- Usually available in vanilla, raspberry or mixed packets. Vanilla will produce a sweeter marlow but not by much.
Dates- The recipe states fresh but if you can't get fresh or they are too expensive then use the packaged dates from the grocery aisle. It is important to check that there are no pits in them because the food processer can't cope with them and is likely to be damaged.
Cream- The quantity does not have to be accurate. If you want the raspberry flavour to be less intense, add more cream.
Ingredients
1.5 cups raspberries
125g marshmallows
6 fresh dates
1 cup cream, whipped.
Method
1. Put dates in food processor and dribble boiling water over and allow to soften.
2. Add raspberries and blitz until smoothish. The raspberry seeds will still be visible.
3. Heat raspberry mixture with marshmallows in a small saucepan until marshmallows melt.
4. Refrigerate until cold.
5. Fold in whipped cream.
6. Freeze until frozen.
7. Enjoy with anything you want.
